SKOKIE, Ill.—Six months ago, the citizens of Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana were subjected to the most devastating natural disaster the U.S. has ever experienced. This spring tornados and severe weather have already ravaged communities throughout the Midwest. Lori Cummings, a homeowner in Fort Deposit, Ala., knows what they are experiencing. In 2004, she saw the damage Hurricane Ivan did to her community and wanted her new home to withstand the next hurricane.

“As far as I was concerned, concrete was the only choice for building my new home," Cummings said.

Cummings found the resources and information she needed at www.concretehomes.com, a Web site sponsored by the Portland Cement Association. The site provides homeowners and builders with the resources to build a concrete home including ready-to-use plans that have been specifically designed for either insulating concrete forms (ICF) or concrete masonry homes, names of contractors throughout the nation using concrete building systems, and contact information for regional suppliers of the systems. In addition, the site explains why concrete building systems are superior not only in providing shelter from natural disasters like hurricanes and tornados, but also in improving a home's energy efficiency.

“Modern concrete home building systems combine concrete’s traditional strength and durability with insulation systems,” Jim Niehoff of Portland Cement Association said. “The mass of concrete slows down the passage of heat moving through the wall, meaning that with the same amount of insulation, a concrete home stays warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer than a wood frame home."

Concrete is pumped into Lori Cummings'
new home in Alabama.

One of the fastest-growing building systems is ICFs where concrete is sandwiched between two insulating layers of foam. Research has shown that homes built with ICFs require 44 percent less energy to heat and 32 percent less energy to cool than comparable frame homes. This can save the typical owner of a 2,000-square foot home in the central United States more than $250 in annual home energy costs. Plus, according to Niehoff, a home built with a concrete building system may be so energy efficient that it may require smaller heating and cooling units, reducing construction costs by as much as $2,000.

Today, an increasing number of American homeowners and builders are looking for alternatives to wood framing and often they are choosing concrete building systems. In 2004, 16.3% of the single-family homes built in the U.S. utilized exterior above-grade concrete wall systems, accounting for more than 226,000 homes in that year alone.

Cummings is glad she visited www.concretehomes.com during her Web research and is looking forward to reaping the benefits when her home is completed this summer.

“Not only is my home beautiful and safe, but I expect my heating and cooling costs to be less than I pay now, even though my new home will be bigger,” she said.

About PCA
Based in Skokie, Ill., the Portland Cement Association represents cement companies in the United States and Canada. It conducts market development, engineering, research, education, and public affairs programs.

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